The Worst Holiday of them All
by Redmage2
Summary: Complete Beast Boy's love of April Fool's Day pushes Raven to the breaking point. What possible reason could she have to enjoy this holiday? RobRae
1. Demonic Duct Tape

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

Summary: In honor of April Fool's Day, I present to you the reason that next year, April Fool's might not be Raven's least favorite holiday... RobRae

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Chapter One:

Demonic Duct Tape

Raven almost didn't come out of her room at all that day. Contrary to the apparently popular belief, her least favorite holiday was _not_ Valentine's Day, nor was it Christmas, nor Easter (although, after spending time as a rabbit last year, Easter was a close second on her hated holidays list). No, Raven's least favorite holiday, at least since becoming a member of the Titans, was April Fools Day.

Raven forced herself into a state of calm and prepared herself to face the borderlined paranoia she had developed about a certain green prankster's favorite holiday. The day would be bad enough without her losing control of her emotions. As she painstakingly gained control of herself, Raven did allow one brief vision to play out in her mind...

_Beast Boy was wide-eyed with fear as the tower plunged into a state of unnatural darkness. The objects he had gathered around him to help him play pranks on his roommates suddenly animated themselves and floated menacingly toward the green titan. As four red, frightening eyes appeared on each object, Beast Boy realized who was causing his belongings to come to life._

_"Raven! RAVEN! Stop! Please, stop! I won't do anything to you ever again, I promise!" But the boy's cries were drowned out as a demonic roll of duct tape floated over to encircle his mouth and limbs. It paused, then unwound itself completely, thoroughly encasing the shapeshifter in the sticky tape. His muffled cries were still audible, at least until..._

Raven snapped out of her imaginings with wide-eyes, as she heard Beast Boy's distinctively feminine shriek from the living room.

"Oh, no," Raven swept urgently through the walls of the tower, afraid that her powers had caused her dream to become reality.

As she quietly morphed through the walls of the main room, Raven was immediately relieved to discover a perfectly normal—for Titan's Tower, anyway—scene. Beast Boy was hopping around in pain holding his butt, Starfire was anxiously following him looking sheepishly apologetic, and Cyborg was sitting on the sofa laughing uncontrollably.

Raven stepped further into the room. "And what happened this time?" She asked dryly, looking to Cyborg for an answer, only to discover him still laughing so hard his human eye was beginning to tear up. With a sigh, she intercepted Starfire. "What happened here?"

"Oh, Raven! I have injured friend Beast Boy!" Starfire looked like she was close to tears.

Raven blinked. "Ok, I wasn't expecting that," she muttered. Raising her voice slightly, she began to calm the nearly hysterical alien. "Starfire, he's just fine—"

"Just fine? It hurts! Dude, she hit me in the butt with one of her starbolts!" Beast Boy cut in loudly, causing Cyborg to collapse into another fit of laughter.

"Oh, Rae...you shoulda seen it..." Cyborg managed to gasp out.

Closing her eyes and breathing deeply for a few moments, Raven succeeded in chasing away most of her irritation. "What. Happened."

Beast Boy stopped massaging his injured butt long enough to take over the conversation. "Ok, so I was getting this one really great pra—uh, um, nevermind what I was doing. I was in the living room, when all of a sudden this roll of duct tape hit me in the head!" Beast Boy distracted himself momentarily by looking around suspiciously, muttering about evil alien conspiracies, which caused Starfire to shoot him a nasty look before she remembered what she had done to the changeling.

"Ok, ok, so I think, you know, that Cy threw it at me, so I'm all, 'hey, what'd you do that for?' and he's all, 'do what? You imagining things or something,' and I'm all like, 'dude, stop throwing things at me!' and he's all, 'I didn't DO ANYTHING!' And then the tape—" Beast Boy trailed off with what Raven gathered was supposed to be a dramatic pause.

Raven sighed, and Beast Boy wisely took up his narrative where he had left off. "The tape...lifted up off the floor and started unwinding, and chasing me around the room!"

"And let me guess, Starfire tried to stop it and ended up hitting you instead?" Raven surmised, affirmed by Beast Boy's emphatic nodding. She turned to Starfire. "Don't worry, Beast Boy isn't upset with you. You were only trying to help. I assume you got the tape in the end?"

Starfire shook her head sadly. "After I...injured...um, after that, the roll of the tape of duct simply became lifeless and ordinary."

Cyborg stood up from the sofa and joined them. "THAT was one of the funniest things I have ever seen, ya'll." He frowned slightly. "But I am worried about what was behind it. If this is a threat—"

Raven had pulled her hood up to cover her blushing. "Can I see that tape? I'll be able to sense if someone has a connection to it." Cyborg retrieved the offending roll of tape from the floor and handed it to Raven. As soon as she touched it, she guiltily realized that she had been unconsciously manipulating it when she was meditating. She pondered momentarily whether she should tell her teammates...

She shook her head. "I don't feel anything. I'll see if I can find out more about it later. Right now, I'm getting my tea."

Raven clutched the roll of duct tape tightly in one hand, but she appeared to have nothing other than her usual calm disposition as she turned and walked into the kitchen. After she had turned, Beast Boy dissolved into anticipatory laughter, doing his best to muffle the sound by stuffing his hand nearly down his throat. After he conquered his laughing fit, he followed Raven into the kitchen, a devious look on his impish face.

As Raven pulled the water pitcher out of the refrigerator and poured some into the teapot, she wrinkled her nose slightly. Something smelled odd. She looked at the contents of the fridge as she replaced the water pitcher and sighed. No mystery there; half the food was rotten, and the date on the baking powder was...two years ago. How was that even possible?

As Raven distractedly prepared her tea, Beast Boy eagerly slid onto a stool at the table to get a good view...and leapt up, yelping in pain. Within the confines of her hood, Raven hid a small smile. While she did feel bad, it was funny...

Raven pulled a couple of tea bags from a box in the cabinet and added them to the water boiling on the stove. Gods, that smelled awful! She eyed the nearby baking powder with disgust, but was interrupted by the whistling tea kettle. Making up her mind to ignore the smell, Raven filled her favorite mug and sipped lightly at the soothing drink.

Perhaps, reader, you can remember what Raven failed to. Yes, in her guilt over causing the duct tape incident, Raven had forgotten what day it was.

Beast Boy had stopped hopping in pain just in time to see Raven drink a mouthful of her tea. Slightly nervously, but with unmistakable glee, the mischievous teenager watched the girl's face turn to stone. For at least ten seconds, during which he grew increasingly nervous, Raven did not move at all.

Beast Boy realized too late that it would have been safer to observe his victim's reaction as...something less obtrusive. He morphed into a bat and began to quickly fly out of the kitchen. Just as he reached the doors, they became encased in black energy and slammed shut. Sweatdrops flying from his furry form, Beast Boy turned around and changed back into a human just in time to see Raven slowly and deliberately setting her mug on the counter.

She began to walk over to the nervous changeling. Beast Boy's eyes widened and he gulped. He could practically FEEL the suppressed rage coming from Raven's cloaked form. Unconsciously, he changed into a small, whimpering puppy.

"Beast Boy." Raven's voice was low and dangerous. Her eyes narrowed when the only response she received was a low whine. "What. Did you do. To my tea?"

Sweating profusely, Beast Boy again returned to his human form. "Eh heh heh, I kinda, maybe, replacedthewaterinthepitcherwithvinegar. Funny, huh?" His grin looked pained.

"Vinegar?" Raven's eyebrow twitched. "Vinegar? In my TEA? You think that's FUNNY?" Without warning, a dark object shot across the room from the kitchen counter. Beast Boy squawked and turned into a turtle, closing his eyes and withdrawing his head into the shell. Raven outstretched her left hand to catch the object, and lifted her right hand toward the cowering green turtle. "Azarath metrion zinthos!"

Beast Boy cautiously opened one eye when he heard the door behind him open and Raven's footsteps pass through it. He changed back into his human form. "Whew! I can't believe I'm still alive!" A slow, mischievous grin spread across Beast Boy's face. "Sweet!"

Still smiling, Beast Boy sauntered into the living room and stood squarely in front of Cyborg. He puffed up his chest and opened his mouth to declare his victory over the terror that was the team's resident goth. But he never got the chance. Cyborg took one look at the green teenager and immediately dissolved into laughter. "Huh?"

In his puzzlement, he turned to Starfire. "What's his problem?" To his surprise, Starfire began to giggle as well. "Hey! What's going on! Why are you all laughing at me? What's so funny!"

"Beast Boy, I was not aware that you wore...the collar," Starfire answered, still giggling. Her giggles turned into full-fledged laughter as Beast Boy began morphing into different animals, attempting to look at his own neck. Finally, he turned into a crane and spotted what had caused his teammate's laughter.

Around his neck was a makeshift collar, encased in liquid black energy, that had remained in place throughout all of his transformations. Returning to his human form, Beast Boy attempted to pull the collar off, nearly strangling himself in the process. "Oh, man! This is so humiliating! Stop laughing, you guys!" His complaints only caused Cyborg and Starfire to laugh harder, leaning on one another to keep from toppling off the sofa.

Glowering, Beast Boy fingered the humiliating object. "This is not cool," he muttered. Again, he turned into a crane to get a glimpse of his new collar. The collar that, through the shadows, looked suspiciously like a roll of demonic duct tape.

.o.o.o.o.

After leaving the kitchen, Raven stalked through the hallways toward her own room, trying to find her emotional balance. Since she hadn't even had her morning tea...

Raven pushed her thoughts away from thoughts of Beast Boy and her ruined tea. As she did so, she accidentally slammed into Robin, who had been wandering in the opposite direction, apparently as distracted as she was.

"Oof!"

"Umph!"

The two titans collided, and ungracefully landed in a heap in the middle of the hallway. Raven blushed furiously, lost control of several emotions at once, and blew out three of the lights in the hall. Wisely, Robin refrained from commenting, and gave her a crooked, slightly embarrassed smile as he helped her up.

"Er, sorry about that, Raven. I guess I wasn't watching where I was going." Raven shook off his apology, and looked as if she was going to flee down the hallway. Robin realized he had rarely seen her so flustered. "Raven, is everything alright?"

"Robin, I absolutely must meditate. My emotions are...unbalanced," Raven spoke edgily, with a forced air of calm, after taking a deep breath.

Robin scrutinized his normally controlled teammate, attempting to discover how her emotions had become so unbalanced. It didn't take him long to realize that her frazzled emotions were probably the after-effects of a prank of Beast Boy's. Robin grimaced. "He doesn't waste any time, does he?"

Slightly surprised at the observation, Raven nodded, untensing her limbs a fraction. She took a deep breath. "He replaced the water for my tea with vinegar."

Robin glared at the wall. Most times, Beast Boy's immaturity was a healthy and sometimes enjoyable counterpart to Raven's seriousness, and to his own. But on days like today... Slowly, Robin's glare turned into a wicked smirk.

Raven tensed again. "My suffering amuses you, Wonder Boy? In that case, I can't wait to see what he has in store for you," Raven hissed icily and began to brush past her leader.

"Raven, wait!" Robin grabbed her elbow just long enough to stop her retreat. Although he gulped under the assault of her glare, he continued smirking. "Actually, I just got an idea for a April Fool's Day joke."

After blinking a few times to calm the emotional backlash of being the recipient of that smirk, Raven's mind reached enlightenment. Slowly, almost uncontrollably, her own lips dragged upwards into a frightening grin. "Want any help with that?"

Robin grinned uncontrollably. "I was hoping you'd ask that. Come on!" He grabbed her arm and together the two plotting birds hurried down the hallway toward Robin's room.

* * *

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	2. Holidays

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: Humor takes a short vacation while romance fills in! But humor will be back next chapter when our heroes invite their friend havoc to visit Beast Boy!

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Holidays

Raven was perched nervously on the edge of Robin's bed, watching its owner pace back and forth in front of her. Raven relaxed slightly and continued watching her leader's fluid, almost hypnotic strides across the room. "Augh! This shouldn't be so hard! We're the smart ones on this team. We should be able to come up with a simple April Fool's Day prank," Robin said in frustration.

Raven's relaxed state fled. She pulled herself out of the semi-trance she had been in, and was disturbed to find that she had actually been smiling slightly. Although, she didn't feel emotionally unbalanced, Raven frowned. It was better to be safe than sorry, especially with the previous uneasy state of her mind, thanks to Beast Boy. She stood up abruptly. "This is actually my least favorite holiday." Robin looked at her questioningly. "Pranks really aren't my thing. I should get back to my room and just stay there for the rest of the day. Things will probably be a lot safer around here if I do."

Robin seemingly ignored the second half of Raven's statement. "What _is_ your favorite holiday?"

For a moment, Raven merely looked blankly at the boy. "Um, actually, it's—"

"Wait, let me guess!" Robin cut her off.

"I thought you wanted me to TELL you what my favorite holiday was," Raven said with exasperation. "Why do you want to know, anyway?"

Robin walked over to the bed and sat down cross-legged in the middle. "I'm just curious." He stared at Raven for almost a full minute before she became unnerved.

"Ok, so why are you staring at me? Do I have some vinegar still on my face?" she asked sarcastically.

"You can come on over and sit down, you know."

"You just ignored my question."

Robin shrugged and continued to do so. "All right, how about this. Come on over and sit down, and I'll tell you what your favorite holiday is, and you can figure out something to ask me."

Raven frowned slightly. "I've been in your head, Robin, I already know what your favorite holiday is, and why." She paused and looked down at the ground for a moment before raising her eyes back to face Robin's mask. "But I didn't need that to be able to tell you that you've loved New Year's more than any other holiday, especially since you've started the Titans. It's symbolized a new beginning for people. At first, you looked at change to be the founding of our team, but now you look on it with the hope that a new year can truly bring a rebirth, renewal, and a strengthening of your life and position here."

Robin couldn't help but stare at her. "I thought that I was the detective on this team," he grinned delightedly.

In response, Raven stepped over to the bed and sat down opposite Robin, folding her legs underneath herself.

He took a deep breath. "All right, your favorite holiday is actually a little harder to figure out, since you don't actually believe in pinpointing one day to celebrate something which should be always recognized. That's why," Robin paused for dramatic effect, noting that Raven had a small, confident smirk on her face. "Mardi Gras is your favorite holiday." Raven's jaw dropped. "Before you came to the tower and were subjected to the joys of April Fool's Day, though, Mardi Gras was also your least favorite holiday."

Raven's eyes widened in shock. "How did you know that?" she whispered, not daring to raise her voice, seemingly for fear that the spell her companion had cast over her would break with the harsh tones of her voice.

Robin's smirk faded into a genuine, if proud, smile. "It's not because of the idiotic festivities in New Orleans that Mardi Gras is your favorite, but because of what it represents. Mardi Gras is about...wearing a mask. About either putting on a mask and acting wild, or taking one off and doing the same. It may not seem like it to the others, Raven, but I can see that you have a mask, too." Robin's voice dropped slightly.

"It's not like mine, though. You can never take it off. You can never experience that revelry that Mardi Gras lets its participants feel. You can never FEEL. Mardi Gras is hope and a reality check all in one for you," Robin concluded softly, taking one of Raven's hands in his.

When he did, her breath hitched, and he could tell that she was barely holding back a sob. Instantly, he felt guilty for bringing up such painful thoughts, and he moved forward and wrapped the girl on his bed in a warm, comforting hug. "I'm sorry, Raven. It was a stupid question."

When he spoke, Raven seemed to regain control. She took a deep breath and pulled back so she could look at his face. "It wasn't a stupid question, Robin." She smiled weakly. "I've been so worried about not wanting to drag people into my problems..." Raven trailed off, unseeingly watching her hands alternately twist and smooth the fabric of Robin's bedspread.

Raven looked up, and it seemed to Robin as though she could see straight through his mask and into his heart. "But for some reason...you're already halfway there. You're following me, begging me to let you in. You're, you're...You're too smart for your own good!" Raven finished with a frustrated cry.

"Raven, I'm following after you, because that's where I want to be. Don't ever think you're dragging me in. I WANT to know everything there is to know about you. I want to know you!"

Raven smiled genuinely. "You already do." Robin smiled in return, amazed to behold the contented expression he had helped Raven feel. He basked in her expression—until all the lights in his room turned black and blew out.

Raven mumbled an explanation and attempted to scoot backwards off the bed, but Robin quickly grabbed her hand, and caught her off balance. With a little tug, he pulled her back into his arms, only this time, her face was turned upward toward his, and he feel her nervous lips trembling against his.

"It's okay," he whispered, and was amazed again to feel her slight shaking stop, and her lips press more firmly against his own in the dark of his room.

Robin slowly deepened their kiss when Raven's tongue darted out to moisten her dry lips. She moaned lightly as his tongue entered her mouth. As their first kiss ended, the two pulled back and stared at one another. Minutes passed by without meaning, and both were nervous, but inwardly delighted that the other was not running away.

Robin considered trying to repeat the fantastic experience, but recalled his broken light bulbs, and those out in the hall. Perhaps on a day when Raven was more in control...

Raven cleared her throat lightly, and spoke up hesitantly, obviously unwilling to break the spell. "So, um, we were going to think of a plan?" As she spoke, Raven's hands found Robin's, reassuring him that she didn't consider their kiss a mistake.

"Huh?" Robin replied as intelligently as he could under the circumstances.

Almost giggling, Raven repeated her question. "For a prank on Beast Boy. We smart ones need to stick together and come up with a plan, right?"

Robin recovered his wits and smirked. "That's right. Now let's see..."

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Well, if that came out of left field for you, it did doubly so for me. I really wasn't planning on doing any serious relationship type writing in this, but it seems to work, so who am I to complain? Anyway, there will be humor coming up! After all, Beast Boy isn't getting off the hook even though the two birds have gotten together! 


	3. Masquerade

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: Ok, so humor isn't fully back from vacation, so she and romance co-wrote this chapter. But humor will be back full time next chapter, I promise!

**To my wonderful reviewers**: (HOLY CRAP, I ACTUALLY HAVE REVIEWERS!) Thank you all so much! This is the greatest response I've ever gotten for anything I've written, and I'm absolutely thrilled to have pleased you all! I only hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!

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Masquerade

Raven was experiencing déjà vu.

Once again, she was seated on the edge of Robin's bed watching him pace back and forth across his room in frustration. There were differences in the situation, though, Raven realized with a carefully muted grin. Absentmindedly, she began humming softly to herself.

After a few moments, the humming sunk into Robin's consciousness and he stopped pacing to sit back down close to Raven. "What's that from? The song sounds a little familiar."

Raven looked slightly embarrassed at having been caught humming. "Um, it's from a musical. You've probably just heard something like it before."

Robin looked thoughtful. "I don't know, it really does sound familiar. What's the name of it?"

"Masquerade," Raven said. "It came to mind when you mentioned Mardi Gras."

"This is going to bother me now, until I figure out where I've heard it," Robin muttered, narrowing his eyes in thought. "Why don't you sing some of it? Maybe that'll help."

Raven's eyes widened in alarm. "Robin, I don't sing." She stated flatly.

"Oh?" Robin's eyebrow arched. "Come on, just a little bit." Raven shook her head. After staring at her for a few moments, Robin smirked. Raven had a moment to look alarmed before he pounced.

"Robin!" Raven squealed in surprise.

"I'm not stopping until _you_ start singing! Come on, Raven," Robin laughed, attacking Raven's sides with his fingers. "I never knew you were ticklish."

Raven continued shaking her head and playfully trying to push Robin off her. Suddenly a wave of shadow shot across the room, cutting through a leg of Robin's desk, and collapsing the desk and spilling all of its contents onto the floor of Robin's room. Robin immediately stopped his assault, freezing in his position— laying halfway on top of Raven's body, his hands gripping her waist. He realized how he was laying at the same time as Raven did, and their eyes both widened at the same moment. Robin quickly scrambled off, shooting a slightly apologetic smile at Raven.

Raven sat up nearly as quickly, coughed, and smoothed her hair in an attempt to regain her dignity. "All right, you win. But only because I just ruined your desk," Raven added belligerently. "Although that only happened because you started tickling me..."

Nervously, Raven took a deep breath, and surprised Robin with the quiet soprano quality of her voice. "Masquerade, paper faces on parade. Masquerade, hide your face so the world will never find you." She hummed a few more notes and then trailed off, looking down and blushing horribly. Mastering herself again, Raven looked back up at Robin. "Have you heard it?"

"No, I don't think I have."

Raven face-faulted.

"Heh, sorry?" Robin rubbed the back of his head with one hand sheepishly.

Recovering, Raven glared at the Boy Wonder. "You mean I sang that for nothing?"

"Not for nothing. I wouldn't say that. You have a pretty good voice." He paused as Raven shook her head in denial. "Since we're not getting anywhere in the prank department, why don't you tell me about the song?"

Raven realized his point, and cleared her throat lightly. "Well, in the musical, it's originally sung by the cast at a masked ball, but the part that I just sang was also at the end. The main character is alone, listening to his music box play the music, and he's singing along with it."

"Music box?"

She nodded. "A music box, and on top of it is a monkey playing the cymbals while the music plays."

"A monkey, huh? That reminds me of that monkey...we found...in Beast Boy's room..." Robin trailed off as their two minds reached the same conclusion at once.

"The monkey!"

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Ok, so there was more talking than I planned for, but now we know what the plot will center upon! I feel bad because these are getting shorter, and this one was almost just filler...but next chapter should be longer, and there will probably just be a couple left. Now I just have to figure out what they're going to do with the monkey...please ignore how wrong that sounds... O.O;;

Masquerade, by the way, is from Phantom of the Opera, which I absolutely worship. Go see the movie! Watch the musical! Listen to the music :coughs: Anyway...


	4. The Monkey

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: I just realized that some of you may not know what I'm talking about when I mention the monkey. During the episode Fear Itself, the Titans hear this voice inside the Tower saying "Help me." They follow it to Beast Boy's closet, and it turns out to be a stuffed monkey playing the cymbals saying "Help me count! One...two..."

And I got more reviews. Happy reviews! Thank you guys so much! So here we go again:

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The Monkey

"You're ready? All right, Titan, go!" Raven rolled her eyes at Robin's dramatics but she found herself suppressing a small grin of excitement as she quietly phased through the walls to complete her first mission. Back in his room, Robin rubbed his hands together gleefully and hunted through the mess on his floor to find the tools he we would need to successfully pull off the prank.

Five minutes later, Raven returned. She sat back down on the bed, placed the small stuffed monkey next to her, and gave her report. "I hope you appreciate that I had to search through _Beast Boy's_ room to get that thing." Raven turned a shade paler than normal as she remembered the disgustingly atrocious unwashed wasteland that was their green teammate's room.

"He was off hiding in one of the storerooms on the third floor, probably perfecting another _hilarious_ prank for someone else. It seems that he gave Starfire a reminder about what April Fool's Day is though, because right now, she's following Cyborg around practicing the bodily noises that Beast Boy taught her a while ago." This time both Titans paused, recalling with dismay the embarrassment the team's public image had suffered when Starfire had shared her amazing newfound talent at making an "armpit chorus" with the press after the team had captured Control Freak.

"Where were those two?"

"Cyborg was in the living room, but he looked like he was about ready to throw himself out the window. Actually, he was thinking about finding Beast Boy, attaching his collar to a boulder, and throwing _him_ out the window." Robin laughed at Raven's matter-of-fact delivery. "We won't have any problems. Do you have everything ready?"

Robin nodded. "Right. I have the voice scrambler set up, along with the miniature speaker and a tape recorder. Here's the framework for movement we can use, and it's synched with this remote. We can use part of the recording that's already there, but not all of it, so it would be easier just to edit out the parts we don't need."

"All right. Let's get to work then."

.o.o.o.o.

When Robin walked into the living room an hour later, he was holding the toy monkey in his hand. Spotting Beast Boy and Cyborg on the sofa, he walked over.

"Hey guys. Where's Starfire?"

Cyborg groaned. "About an hour after I stopped laughing at her "armpit chorus" she decided she needed to go find her old Tameranian joke book."

"So you've decided to teach her the finer points of April Fool's Day, huh Cyborg?" Robin chuckled.

"Oh, man, don't even get me started! It's all collar-boy's fault anyway," Cyborg glared at Beast Boy.

"Collar boy?" Robin feigned surprise when he beheld the shadow-covered roll of duct tape encircling Beast Boy's neck. Raven had told him about her reaction to the vinegar prank, but as he actually looked at the results of her spell, he couldn't hold back his laughter.

Beast Boy looked annoyed, until he noticed what Robin bore in his hand. "Hey! That's mine! Where'd you get that?"

"This?" Robin held up the stuffed monkey. "I thought I remembered that it was yours. Well, I found it sitting on my desk just now." He tossed the monkey lightly across the room to Beast Boy.

As he caught it, Beast Boy frowned. "I didn't put it there. I bet it was Raven!"

Cyborg cut in. "Man, why would _Raven_ do something like that?"

"I don't know, 'cause she's Raven?" And she's really pissed at me, Beast Boy added silently to himself.

"As great as that logic is, Beast Boy," the other two boys got the impression that Robin had rolled his eyes, "Raven isn't even in the tower. I saw her storming out of here a few hours ago. What did you do to her, anyway? She looked pretty pissed."

"Why do you think _I_ had anything to do with it?" Beast Boy tried and failed to look innocently at his leader. Cyborg whacked him in the back of the head. "OW! Okay, alright! I might have—done something to her tea." He rushed on as he noticed Robin about to scold him. "But, dude! Look at what she did to me!"

Robin tried to suppress another laugh and look stern at the same time. "You should just leave her alone for the rest of the day, Beast Boy. You know how she needs to stay emotionally balanced."

Beast Boy looked at the floor guiltily.

"Don't worry about the past, just...don't do something like that again, all right?" When Beast Boy nodded vigorously, fingering his collar, Robin continued. "Well, I just wanted to give that back to you. I guess I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'll be back in my room if you need me."

The two boys nodded at Robin as he left the room. As soon as he turned the corner, he whispered, "Stage three is a success."

Raven materialized next to him from a pool of shadows. "Excellent." She grabbed Robin's arm and pulled him with her back into the darkness.

* * *

Dun dun dun!

What the heck did they do to that poor monkey? What are they planning to do to Beast Boy! Find out that and more in the next chapter!


	5. A Closet View

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: Gah! I wish I knew what the heck was going on with updating system. Talk about screwy...But thank you again to all of you who are bearing with it to get to the next chapter! This is the one we've all been waiting for!

* * *

A Closet View

"This stench is going to make me pass out! How can he stand it? I thought animals had a heightened sense of smell," Robin whispered into Raven's ear.

"Just try not to think about it," she hissed back. "Be glad none of his stuff is in here."

"What happened to all of it, anyway?"

"I shifted it into another dimension."

"I feel sorry for whoever's _in_ that dimension." Raven repressed a snicker as she heard a noise in the corridor outside Beast Boy's room.

"Are the camcorders set up?" Robin's voice was urgent in her ear.

"Yes. I have one on his dresser between some of the magazines. The other one is right here, in the crack of the door," Raven replied, with the tone of one who had answered the question before.

"Good."

Raven rolled her eyes. "I already told you it was all set up. Don't worry, we'll get it all on tape." She paused, then turned slightly to look at Robin. "Since when do we have these, anyway? I had no idea we had camcorders."

Robin shrugged. "We have lots of stuff. I think Cyborg ordered a couple to make them compatible with his technology for future use, but never got around to it."

"I think I heard him," Raven hissed urgently. Both Titans pressed as close to the crack in Beast Boy's closet door as they could. Raven became slightly distracted when she felt Robin's chest press up against her in the close confines of the foul-smelling closet of their teammate. She wrinkled her nose. Not exactly an ideal situation. Raven returned her attention to the main interior of Beast Boy's room as its owner stepped through the door, cradling the toy monkey to his chest with one hand.

"This is going to be good," Robin grinned into the darkness.

.o.o.o.o.

Beast Boy looked down at his childhood toy, one of the few keepsakes of his past that still remained with him. He smiled slightly at the little monkey. "How did you end up in Robin's room?"

With a shrug, he put the puzzle out of his mind, and went back to planning his next great prank. He was always cautious about playing tricks on Starfire, ever since the time she had given him the silent treatment for the accidental dousing in motor oil she had received. Raven might be more hazardous to play tricks on, but at least her angry reactions were relatively simple to deal with. Having Star upset with him was a nightmare. With these thoughts in mind, Beast Boy went over a few of the more amusing jokes in his repertoire that he could tell her.

Cyborg was going to get his prank later in the afternoon, the next time he went into his room. Beast Boy laughed mischievously and wondered how long it would take the team to get used to Cyborg after radioactive, super-strength hair growth treatment was dumped on the human half of his head...

Beast Boy frowned as he considered how he would pull off his trick on Robin. He had missed his chance when Robin was in the living room, he now realized, because he had been distracted by the monkey. Beast Boy looked down at the toy. Had Robin come into his room to take it and use it to keep Beast Boy from pulling his prank on his team leader? That was certainly sneaky enough for Robin, Beast Boy realized, but not everything added up in that scenario.

Putting the problem out of his mind again, Beast Boy adopted a look of intense concentration as he considered the best way to get Robin out of his room. To Beast Boy's advantage, it didn't seem like Robin had really thought about what day it was, but Beast Boy always found it hard to figure out what his masked leader was thinking. Well, by the end of the day, Beast Boy vowed silently, he would get the better of the Boy Wonder himself! After all, he had to come out of his room again sometime.

Beast Boy jumped suddenly as the door closing on his still-sore butt interrupted his musings. "YEOWCH!" With the strangled cry, he threw the toy monkey forward into his room, not paying attention as it hit the floor, being slightly more occupied by hopping around his room in pain, both hands clutching his burnt behind. "Ow, ow, ow, ow!" As he stopped to take a breath, Beast Boy looked sharply around his room. He thought he had heard someone laughing.

"Help me!"

After a few moments, Beast Boy recovered from his newest trauma enough to be able to breathe. "Man, I keep forgetting that thing can talk! It's actually kinda creepy," he spoke out loud, reassuring himself that he wasn't actually hearing noises from his closet.

"Help me. Help me count!" the monkey continued happily from its position on Beast Boy's floor.

As Beast Boy reached down to pick up the toy, he froze in shock. The monkey had just moved its head to look up at him! There was no possible way he could have imagined that!

"Why don't you help him count, Beast Boy?" the monkey asked with a distinctively male voice.

"Aaah!" Beast Boy fell backwards onto the floor, staring at the little toy in shock. "Wha—what—you just—aahh!" He watched with wide-eyed disbelief as the monkey pushed itself off the floor and began walking toward him. "Dude! This is the kind of thing that only happens in movies! You're not real!"

"Oh, I'm very real," the monkey assured him.

"Then you're being controlled by something! The Puppet King, Control Freak, trained underground plotting death-bears, SOMETHING! This can't be happening!" Beast Boy's voice grew panicked.

"I am not controlled by anyone but myself," the monkey sounded, and somehow managed to look insulted.

Beast Boy blinked rapidly. "How long have you—"

"Been self-aware? I am not the same toy which you have had since you were three. I...am from the future."

Beast Boy turned into a fish.

He immediately began gasping and flopping around, and it seemed possible that he might actually be able to suffocate himself. The toy monkey from the future walked over and smacked him in the side of the head with one of the cymbals it carried in its hands, shocking the green teenager enough to return him to his human form.

After recovering his breath, Beast Boy launched a barrage of questions. "How did you come here? WHY did you come here? Why did you come HERE? What do you want? What's the future like? Is it ruled by porn-reading scarecrow people? Or by glowy mutant evil zombie mecha tree snakes? Or—" He stopped momentarily as his brain tried to catch up to his questions.

The monkey took advantage of the pause to answer Beast Boy's questions. "I came here on foot. I never said I was from outer space, after all." Beast Boy's head seemed about to explode from the implication that the earth was ruled by talking stuffed monkey toys. "I came here to speak to you. The reason I came _here_ was to find you. I have a message for you. The future is ruled by the Council of Sanin, a conference of the greatest diplomats and warriors from the three great planets of my age."

"Seriously?" Beast Boy was clearly beginning to let his wonderment overcome the strangeness of the situation.

"Of course. I did not come two hundred years into the past simply to lie to you," the monkey sounded indignant.

"Sorry," Beast Boy wracked his brain for more questions. "Wait, you said you had a message for me?"

"Indeed," the monkey replied gravely. "Beast Boy, due to a series of time slips and paradoxes, I...am your _true_ father."

Beast Boy turned into a frog, and sat nearly motionless on his floor, bug-eyed in confusion. He made a croaking noise which an observer would have been kind to consider a ribbit.

Distantly, he heard several muffled noises from his closet, then a loud thumping. He returned to his human form again, but managed to retain his dazed, wide-eyed look. Beast Boy looked at his closet in paranoia. "What was that?" he whispered, almost dreading the answer.

"I brought friends," the monkey stated in a rather strangled tone which Beast Boy couldn't quite analyze.

Gulping, Beast Boy stood up and bravely walked over to the closet door. He paused only slightly, glancing back at the unmoving monkey—his father?—before he slid the door open. For a moment, he could only stare in shocked silence at the two pairs of angry, glowing white eyes staring at him from the midst of his pile of dirty laundry.

He fainted dead away.

* * *

:takes a deep breath: Whoa. Okay, Beast Boy's mind is a SCARY place. Although I guess mine is just as scary since I did come up with all those random things...Well, there's one chapter left, and it'll probably be on the shorter side, since all I have planned for it is a kind of wrap-up of events.

Did anyone catch my reference to my favorite Naruto character? Hee hee.

**Sakura**: I do agree with you about the relationship between Robin and Starfire. The possibilities are definitely there, more so than for one between Robin and Raven. But, in recent episodes (ok, Birthmark especially), they've definitely gotten closer. I can see either one...I just like Rob/Rae more :grin:


	6. Between Faintings

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: I am absolutely GIDDY over the response this story has received. Utterly stunned. Seriously everyone, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading and reviewing so encouragingly! Extra special thanks go to **KidFlashisHot**, **Misti-eyed**, **Cherry Jade**, **Masterarcher**, **and FOREVER**, **Darkofthenight**, **Raven'teacher**, and **Mirumo**, who reviewed for multiple chapters, and to the great people who reviewed both this andmy other Teen Titans fics! I hope I'm not forgetting anyone, but these were the reviews I had when I wrote and posted this chapter. Thank you ALL SO MUCH!

* * *

Between Faintings

Beast Boy opened his eyes slowly and quietly. He was on the floor of his room. As he struggled to remember what had happened to him, he turned his head and looked blearily at the bottom bunk of his bed, which was, for a change, relatively clear of junk. Except for two things shaped kinda like Raven and Robin, only it looked more like Robin and Raven fused together or something...

Beast Boy blinked a little to clear his vision. He was still seeing the Raven-shape and the Robin-shape, and they were still—

That couldn't be right.

He turned into a horsefly and buzzed closer.

By the time he got close enough to determine that the two shapes were indeed Raven and Robin, Beast Boy had gotten an eyeful—actually dozens of eyefuls with his insect vision—of Raven and Robin making out on his bed.

Beast Boy dropped out of the air, morphing back into a human as he fainted again.

.o.o.o.o.

Raven and Robin were forced apart abruptly as Beast Boy's body literally appeared out of thin air to drop into their laps. Raven let out an uncharacteristic shriek of mingled surprise and embarrassment and pushed the green boy onto the ground.

In concert, the couple looked at the unconscious Beast Boy then back at each other's stunned faces. Robin was the first to grin and start chuckling. Raven continued to look somewhat frozen in shock for a moment, fueling Robin's laughter. Finally, she began to laugh as well, desperately trying to reign in her utterly confused emotions.

They both laughed until they were out of breath and could laugh no more. Holding her stomach, Raven made an attempt to speak. "The prank...it worked..." she gasped.

"Of course...told you...two of us...smart ones." As Robin caught his breath, he stared at Raven and grinned helplessly at her. She caught his eyes and couldn't seem to stop herself from smiling back. He had never seen Raven be so spontaneous, or allow herself to feel so many positive emotions. And, oddly enough, it was sort of thanks to Beast Boy.

Raven's face became more serious as she continued to look at Robin. She closed her eyes and looked down at her lap. "Today was a one time thing, you know that, right?" She had looked down to avoid seeing Robin in pain, but she could still feel the stab of his emotions. They seemed to strike right at her heart, as real as her own. "What I mean, is that you're my closest friend, and then some. You know me better than anyone, and you actually care enough to want to know more. I—I'm not going to stop you. But today," she paused to collect her scattered thoughts.

"Today, I actually _felt_. And nothing exploded—except for your desk. We're all still alive. _You're_ still okay. That was what I was worried about the most. I was afraid that if I let myself be free with my feelings, you would be the one to get hurt.

"Maybe I have more control than I thought. Maybe some of my emotions are released in different ways. I honestly don't know. And that's why, until I _do_ know, today was a one time thing." When she had finished speaking, Raven cautiously looked up at Robin. She saw the beginnings of a relieved smile forming.

"Raven, I thought you were trying to tell me that we shouldn't keep feeling what we were feeling for each other. You know, Starfire is my best friend, but that's because you're more than a best friend for me. Even before you were in my mind, it seemed like you just understood who I was. The two of us, like I said, we're the smart ones. We just _get_ each other. And I'm glad that you see that," Robin said as his heart rate slowly returned to normal.

"So basically, you need some space?" he asked after a moment of comfortable shared silence.

Raven shook her head. "It's more that I need time. Can you just be there for me for a while?"

"Of course, Raven," Robin placed his hand on hers and held it gently. He was taken by surprise when she reached up and pulled him closer for another kiss. "Raven, wha—"

She looked at him with a slightly mischievous expression. "Today isn't done yet."

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter. But I'm posting the next one at the same time, and we can look forward to Beast Boy waking up!

**Alena-chan: **:claps hands: You read my story! I'm glad you enjoyed it, and that I was able to make you laugh. Hopefully things will get better in your life soon! I really loved reading all of your works, and I'm looking forward to still reading the stories I haven't gotten to yet. I'm definitely a fan of your stories, and it's great that you were able to enjoy mine!


	7. Team Meetings

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. 

A/N: This one is again mixed humor and serious reactions. After this will be an epilogue which will take place a few days later.

* * *

Team Meetings

After accidentally kicking Beast Boy in the head, Robin suddenly remembered where they were and what they had been doing before they had...become distracted. "What should we do about him? He's going to wake up soon."

"Let's keep him confused a while." Robin looked surprised at her suggestion. "What? This is payback for every trick he's pulled for the past four years."

"That's a good point," Robin conceded. "Look, he's coming to."

Robin and Raven bent over Beast Boy, curious about what he would do once he was awake. His eyes opened slightly, then he blinked and opened them all the way.

"Whoa," the changeling moaned, then looked up at his two teammates and began to panic.

Robin held his shoulder. "Beast Boy, are you okay?"

"We heard you scream," Raven added.

For a moment, Beast Boy forgot about the talking stuffed monkey invasion and simply shouted in indignation. "HEY! I don't scream!"

"Actually, it kind of did sound like a scream, Beast Boy," Robin affirmed, doing an excellent job of keeping a straight face. "What happened?"

As his memories came flooding back, Beast Boy pulled away from Robin's hand and stood up, slowly backing against a wall. "You're...you're...EVIL DOPPLEGANGERS FROM THE FUTURE!"

Robin and Raven exchanged a glance and looked blankly at their teammate. "Uh, wanna start at the beginning?" Raven asked drolly.

Still cowering against the wall, Beast Boy took up his tale. "Okay, so I brought my toy monkey in here after Robin gave it to me in the living room, only it's not MY toy monkey. It's a talking mini-monkey from the future, where the world is ruled by sand ninjas from other planets, and he's not just a toy monkey, he's my father!" Beast Boy stopped to take a breath, and was about to rush on when Raven interrupted him.

"Beast Boy, you've had that toy for years. Why did it decide to share all of this with you _now_?" she sounded skeptical.

At the same moment, Robin cut in. "Your father?"

"Yeah! That's what _I_ thought. But he told me so himself!" Beast Boy protested.

Raven turned seriously to Robin. "So now he's hearing voices. I always knew he'd crack someday."

Robin couldn't hide his smirk any longer. "So tell me, Beast Boy...do the voices tell you to kill?"

Raven rolled her eyes. "You were just waiting to say that, weren't you?"

Beast Boy interrupted them. "_I_ know what's going on here! You're evil clones from the future who came back in time to stop me from learning the truth. But it's too late now!"

Robin turned to Raven, looking slightly worried. "You don't think he's actually insane, do you?"

Raven sighed. "No. Beast Boy, listen. We made your stuffed monkey into a remote controlled toy with a little speaker attached. When you heard it talking to you, that was actually Robin. We were hiding in the closet watching the whole thing. You opened the closet door, and when you saw us, you fainted."

Beast Boy gaped at her. "You mean this was all a PRANK? YOU GUYS pulled a prank on ME?"

Robin fished the small microphone out of his belt. The monkey, lying across the room, responded. "Yup."

"That. Is the best prank. I have ever. Seen," Beast Boy said in the most serious tone his teammates had ever heard him use. Despite themselves, the other two Titans couldn't help but smile proudly.

Beast Boy suddenly remembered the brief moments he had witnessed between the other two between his two fainting spells. Except fainting didn't sound very manly. Between the times he...uh...um...was overcome by the situation! Yeah, that sounded important. Beast Boy shook his head to regain his train of thought. "Wait. When I woke up the first time, you guys were—"

"Ah, about that, um," Robin scratched the back of his head and looked to Raven for help.

"That _wasn't_ an April Fool's Day joke," she said firmly, and was rewarded with a genuine smile from Robin.

Before Beast Boy could say anything, Raven asked him dryly, "You aren't going to turn into a fish, are you?" Robin snickered.

"You two are—you're actually—you're TOGETHER?" Beast Boy stammered out. Robin and Raven nodded. "Whoa." He narrowed his eyes at the couple. "And you're SURE the monkey isn't from the future? 'Cause that would explain a lot."

"We're positive, Beast Boy," Robin assured him, and walked over to pick up the toy. "We'll take all of the stuff out of it and give it back to you just like it used to be."

Raven followed Robin out the door. Standing in the doorway, she paused. "Happy April Fool's Day, Beast Boy."

.o.o.o.o.

Cyborg breathed a sigh of relief. FINALLY he had convinced Starfire to try her jokes on Beast Boy. The girl was great, but after sitting through twenty-some pages of Tameranian knock-knock jokes, he was about ready to run himself over with his own car. Although he was curious about what a greblookran shlanklor was. Starfire had blushed an awful lot when she was telling that one...

Hearing footsteps rushing toward him in the corridor, he pressed himself against the wall in time to barely avoid being trampled by Beast Boy, who was literally dragging Starfire behind him. A few steps later, the changeling realized he had just passed his metallic teammate, and screeched to a halt, falling head over heels onto the ground into a jumbled heap with the confused, swirly-eyed alien.

"THERE you are, Cyborg! Man, we've been looking all over for you!" Beast Boy exclaimed as he extricated himself from the tangle of limbs.

"Ow, that is my hair, Beast Boy," Starfire winced. "Yes, Beast Boy proclaims that he is with news, but he would not share until we had located you. Since we have now found Cyborg, please share!"

Standing up, Beast Boy waved his arms excitedly. "Ok, you guys are never going to believe this! Robin and Raven, TOGETHER! Robin and Raven!"

Starfire looked confused. "Where are our friends together, and why would we not believe it?"

Beast Boy looked at Starfire a little guiltily. One would have to be blind, after all, not to have noticed Starfire's strong feelings toward Robin. "Um, sorry, Star. It's not a _where_, it's more like a how. Robin and Raven are like, going out."

Before Starfire could respond, Cyborg interrupted. "Don't worry, Star, I think those two birds must be messin' with BB. It _is_ April Fool's, after all." He turned to Beast Boy. "You know that man.Or did getting collared mess with your senses?"

At the mention of his apparently irremovable collar, Beast Boy scowled. "That's not it! They weren't messing with me. Ok, well, yeah, they were messing with me. But not about this! They're seriously a couple!"

Starfire looked stricken. "They are—a couple? And they did not inform us of this themselves?"

Beast Boy reverted to looking guilty. "Well, I might'vecaughtthemmakingoutonmybedwhentheythoughtIwasunconscious."

"Please repeat your words slowly, I did not understand," Starfire requested, blinking.

"Let's just say, they didn't exactly tell me, so much as I found out. But when I did find out, they confirmed it!"

"Confirmed what?" Raven walked out of the shadows in the hallway behind Beast Boy, smirking slightly at the girlish shriek that she had caused for at least the third time that day.

Starfire flew up and grasped her hand. "FRIEND! Truthfully, are you and Robin of the couple?"

Raven glared at Beast Boy. "Yes, we are, Starfire, although we were going to break it to you ourselves. Look, I—"

"Breaking? There need not be breaking involved! I am thrilled for my friends!" Starfire jumped up and down, clapping her hands.

"Starfire, I'm glad you're happy, but, I thought that you...had feelings for Robin, too." When Starfire merely looked confused, Raven clarified. "I thought that you had feelings of, well, more than friendship for Robin."

"Oh, no, Raven, I assure you I do not. While it is true that I once felt such things for Robin, I have recognized them as symptoms of 'the crush.' Similar to the crush you and I have shared for Aqua—" Raven slammed her hand over Starfire's mouth.

"I'm glad it's not a problem," Raven said sincerely. Glaring down the hallway at the triumphantly gloating Beast Boy and the stunned Cyborg, she snapped out, "What? Did I just grow another set of eyes?"

"Ahahaha, another set of eyes! That's a good one, Raven, especially for you!" Beast Boy realized he was digging himself into a hole with his comments when Raven smirked. "Hey, what's so—AHHH! Dude, that stung! A lot!" Beast Boy grabbed at his collar. "Come on, Rae, take it off, pleeeeaaaaasssseeee?" He morphed into a kitten and stared at her with shimmering eyes.

"No."

"Um, why is everyone gathered in the hallway?" Robin joined gathering.

"Hey, man, congratulations!" Cyborg offered Robin a high-five.

"Thanks, Cyborg. I know this must seem kind of weird to you guys—"

"Not at all! Two friends have added to their friendship, giving more meaning to the already wonderful bond!" Starfire gushed eloquently.

One of Robin's eyes widened as he eyed Starfire, slightly skeptical of her exuberant attitude. "She's alright," Raven assured him.

"So you guys are okay with this?" Robin asked. The other Titans nodded. "Great! Oh, and Beast Boy, here's the monkey again. I took everything out of it. It's just the way it used to be." Robin handed the now-normal toy back to its owner and headed for the living room, edging his way past his teammates.

Raven followed Robin, but as she passed Beast Boy, she leaned down slightly to whisper in his ear. "Or is it?"

Cyborg and Starfire were left somewhere between curiosity, confusion, and shock as Raven walked away laughing, enjoying the look of paranoia on Beast Boy's face.

"DUDE! That isn't cool! You fixed it, right? Guys?"

* * *

Well, I kind of liked that chapter, but I'm also a little irked at myself for the kind of clichéd response from Starfire. I thought it was better to have the team's reactions, than not to, however, so I had to think of SOMETHING.

All right, last chapter coming up, and it'll probably be on the short side, but close to all humor.

Thank you again to all of my WONDERFUL reviewers!


	8. Movie Night

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans, but if I did, I'd keep them in a miniature replica of their former habitat. Except for Robin and Raven. I'd take them out and play with them. I own no more of Star Wars than my VHS tapes of all the movies and all of the CDs. But if I did own it, I would SO take home a lightsaber! 

A/N: Two things: 1) It will help to **re-read chapter five** before reading this chapter.

2) This chapter kind of has a soundtrack, so if you happen to own the _Return of the Jedi_ soundtrack, most of the music is from the title theme track and if not, it should be fairly obvious what's playing. To everyone else, just hope that I describe things well enough that you get a general idea. Essentially, I'm using it to give people an idea of the pace of, well, just read on...

* * *

Movie Night

"YEAH!" screeched Beast Boy as he bounded out of the elevator. "We TOTALLY kicked Rancid's butt!" He turned to grin at his teammates as they followed him into the living room at a more sedate pace. "And did you check me out?"

Starfire clapped her hands appreciatively. "Yes, it was quite clever of you to blind the evil Rancid!"

"Dude," Cyborg laughed. "You turned into a bird and pooped on his head!"

"And it was nasty," Raven said dryly. She emerged last from the elevator alongside Robin. The two stood shoulder to shoulder for a moment a little awkwardly before she shot him a look. Instantly understanding the glance's meaning, as he seemed to be doing even more easily lately, Robin wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Beast Boy, I'll give you points for ingenuity, but I really have to agree with Raven. For one thing, that was just unsanitary," Robin tried to sound serious, although he was obviously trying to suppress a laugh.

"Of COURSE you agree with Raven. You ALWAYS agree with Raven," Beast Boy pouted in mock annoyance. "But it was still pretty sweet!"

"Whatever you say, Beast Boy," Robin surrendered. He couldn't really disagree, after all. It seemed like he and Raven DID agree about almost everything. One night, a week after their April Fool's Day epiphany, the two had gotten together and sat together for hours, talking and just enjoying the time they were spending together. A few nights after THAT, they had been forced to develop a way to deal with the disagreements that would inevitably arise. In the end, they settled on talking the problem through quietly.

...For all of about two minutes. When they started yelling at each other, Raven had transported them both into the gym and started a sparring match with Robin, seemingly out of nowhere. But it had worked. By the time they had finished channeling their aggression into their fight, they were too tired to do anything but rationally talk out a solution to their problem.

Robin chuckled again. He couldn't even remember what had set them at each other's throats, but he vaguely remembered something about disliking a favorite character in one of Raven's novels, which had escalated into a metaphor for life...

He brought himself back to reality quickly as he heard Cyborg talking. "And when Wonder Boy gets his head out of the clouds, we'll be able to start. Yo, man, how come you still haven't told us what movie we're gonna be watching?"

Raven struggled valiantly and mostly succeeded in hiding her grin. _She_ knew what movie Robin would be showing for the team's movie night...

Robin didn't even bother concealing his devious smile. "That's a surprise. Why don't we all get washed up and meet back here in a half hour?"

He watched the Titans take his advice, then turned to Raven. "This is going to be good."

She giggled slightly as she untangled herself from his embrace before floating off to her room to shower.

Robin surveyed the empty living room for another moment before departing, the grin still on his face. He'd been looking forward to this night for three weeks now.

.o.o.o.o.

Alone in her room, Raven allowed herself another small giggle. When nothing in her room became encased in shadow, she gave in to a moment of full-fledged laughter.

Although she would never admit it, Raven was looking forward to the movie night almost as much as Robin. Before April Fool's Day, she had only allowed herself to open up enough to make a few cracks at Beast Boy or whatever criminal de jour the team happened to be facing.

Raven was quickly discovering, though, that she had a rather wicked sense of humor. Her only regret about April Fool's Day was that she hadn't realized the full potential of Beast Boy's collar until the day was almost over. There had been so many collar jokes she could have made, too...

She had been quite surprised to discover that Robin's sense of humor ran parallel to her own. Raven would have guessed that, if anything, he would have associated himself more with Beast Boy's type of humor, given the horrible one-liners he used to torture the town's criminal element. But Robin's strategic mind could be put to work toward things other than battle plans, as both she and Beast Boy now knew. And after tonight, the rest of the Titans would as well.

As she disrobed and entered her shower, Raven remembered the hours upon hours she had spent locked in a video-editing room of the tower that she hadn't even know existed before Robin showed it to her. Neither of them had wanted the video evidence of their brilliant prank to go to waste, so for two weeks, they had thrown themselves at the task of editing the two angles of footage into a final, presentable movie.

Raven started shampooing her hair. This would definitely be worth the frustrated weeks of squinting at computer and television screens, trying to make cuts at the precise, correct moments, and picking out the soundtrack. She grinned again. Well, it hadn't been all that bad. After all, she had been secluded from the rest of the team _with Robin_ for the better part of two weeks. Raven hastily gained control over her meandering thoughts as her shampoo bottle exploded.

"Ow, shampoo in the eyes," she groaned. She had just given herself a painful but necessary reminder that she still did not have perfect control over her emotions, not even her positive ones, although she was gaining more control daily. "Confront and control," she murmured to herself.

Idly, she realized she had been in the water for quite a while. "I'd better hurry. Don't wanna miss any of this..."

.o.o.o.o.

Quitely, Raven placed her hand on Robin's shoulder as he stood in front of the rest of the team, already firmly ensconced on the sofa. "All right, guys. One of the movies is pretty short, but it's a really good comedy. The other one is a great action flick." Before anyone could object, Robin rushed on. "So, we're going to have a double feature, tonight. Everybody settled? Okay, Raven, hit the lights."

The couple moved over to the space waiting for them at one end of the curved sofa. Raven used her powers to flick the lights off as Robin placed the first of the movies into the DVD player.

The Titans were met with a black screen. Slowly, yellow writing scrolled up from the bottom of the screen as music began to play in the background.

_What you are about to see has been filmed on location with the men and women of law enforcement. The following has been recorded without the consent of the parties involved. Any resemblance to real individuals is not coincidental._

Cyborg and Starfire watched the screen curiously, randomly grabbing junk food. Beast Boy recognized the song and the way the disclaimer had scrolled from his favorite television show, but he watched the screen with a sudden, strong premonition of impending doom. He opened his mouth to protest, but looked over at Robin and Raven and realized that objecting would do him no good. Instead, he did the next best thing.

He stuffed a pillow over his head and turned into a turtle. He SO knew what was coming next; he just couldn't believe those two were so evil.

The lettering scrolled off the top of the screen, and gradually the audience became aware of a vertical line of light that was growing wider with each passing second. Beast Boy morphed into a human again and peered over the top of his pillow in a sort of fascinated horror.

After the camera had adjusted to the influx of light, the Titans were able to discern the interior of Beast Boy's room. Seamlessly, the music became much lighter as the camera panned slowly around the room. Beast Boy wondered if he could distract the others. He looked over at Cyborg, who was being quietly questioned by Starfire. Unfortunately, they both seemed intrigued by the "movie."

Suddenly, the door to the room swished open. The music took a more upbeat and confrontational turn. The angle switched and the camera zoomed in on Beast Boy, then focused on the monkey he was cradling in his arms. Swirls of a sinister theme played in the background.

As the Beast Boy on screen hugged the toy monkey and the music became sentimental, the Beast Boy in the living room turned into an amoeba and attempted to sink through the sofa cushions in embarrassment. But he knew his mortification was only beginning.

Onscreen, Beast Boy seemed to be holding an inner conversation with himself. The ever-varying moods and themes of the music, from dark to flutteringly light, supported the assumption.

Human once more, couch-Beast Boy winced in sympathy as film-Beast Boy hopped around the room, holding his butt in pain after the doors closed on it. The other Titans, who had been merely chuckling before, burst into raucous laughter. He scowled at the screen. Even the music seemed to be laughing at him.

As the music—and Beast Boy's pained contortions—died down, hints of the sinister theme subtly crept into the soundtrack. Couch-Beast Boy transformed into an emu and stuck his head between the couch cushions. Seconds later, he turned into a human again. It was no good; he didn't want to look, but he couldn't stop himself—

The monkey began its normal speech and the Titans collectively shuddered as they remembered how it had scared them the last time they had heard it. Abruptly, the theme gained power as the monkey began to move and talk of its own accord. Starfire gasped, and Cyborg watched the screen with an expression of extreme awe. Beast Boy turned into a dog and whimpered.

The music complimented the conversation between the two green beings as it continued. As film-Beast Boy ranted about the future, the music mocked him, rising to whimsical heights. Slowly, it faded into a darker theme once more as the monkey began to speak.

In the dramatic pause before its grand message, Beast Boy again turned human and chanced a look at his teammates. He was taken aback slightly by the identical looks of almost predatory anticipation gracing Robin and Raven's faces. He quickly turned to Cyborg, who looked like he was going to hurt himself from holding in his laughter. Starfire seemed to be on the edge of her seat in suspense.

The sinister theme abruptly reached its crescendo as the monkey gave its dramatic proclamation. As film-Beast Boy turned into frog, four Titans laughed uproariously.

The music became tense and soft again as Beast Boy heard and began to investigate the noises from his closet, only to again delve loudly into the sinister theme as an abrupt camera change brought the audience face to face with the two glowing-eyed, closeted Titans who had triggered Beast Boy's fainting spell.

Starfire gasped, but giggled as Beast Boy passed out. The camera zoomed in slightly on the Titans as they stepped out from under Beast Boy's immense pile of dirty laundry and glared down at him. As one, they looked up at the camera.

The music became lighter and faster, reminiscent of the music which had accompanied the disclaimer, and the screen switched to black. Credits for the editing and the music rolled onto the screen.

All of the Titans blinked as the lights came up. Beast Boy tried in vain to distract his teammates by crying out in mock pain. "Ow, my eyes!" Unfortunately, the plan backfired.

All four of his teammates swung their heads around to look at him, varying looks of amusement playing on their faces. Beast Boy gave a small "Eeep!" and turned into a hummingbird. Robin and Raven looked downright triumphant, while Cyborg seemed to be trying not to roll on the floor in laughter. Starfire was also amused, but looked like she had several questions about the jokes.

"Well, guys, what did you think? Good comedy?" Robin questioned.

"Good? GOOD? Man, that was brilliant! How on EARTH did you guys come up with all that?" Cyborg shook his head in amazement. "That's the funniest thing I've seen in—well, since even before Raven slapped that collar on BB!"

"Truly, the video was most amusing. But I do not understand, how was it possible for the stuffed toy of the monkey to be the father of friend Beast Boy?" Starfire questioned.

"Well, he wasn't Star, that was just part of the joke," Robin grinned.

"Oh," Starfire frowned, then brightened. "The movie was two digits raised!"

Everyone blinked.

"Two thumbs up?" Raven clarified after a minute, and was rewarded with a beaming grin from Starfire.

"Well, _I_ didn't think it was funny! You guys are always picking on me!" Beast Boy complained, turning human.

"Well, true, but you play jokes and pranks on us all the rest of the year. I think we should get one day where the opposite is true," Raven replied swiftly.

"Come on, guys, let's not fight about this. Beast Boy, we just wanted to show the others the rest of the joke," Robin tried to smooth things over. "Here, we'll start the other movie now." He ejected the well-made home movie and placed the action film in the player.

Just after the previews were over, Beast Boy declared war. "Oh, yeah? Well, just you guys wait till next year!"

* * *

Ok, for the first part of the "movie," I was listening to the main theme as the disclaimer screen scrolled by. On the _Return of the Jedi_ soundtrack, the music just goes right into "Approaching the Death Star," which I chose to have next anyway. For the few hints of lighter moments, like when Beast Boy is talking, I had parts of "Tatooine Rendezvous" in mind. Obviously (I hope), the "sinister theme" is the "Imperial March." The last bit, right when he's looking in the closet, is mostly from the Imperial March again. Pretend the Imperial March goes right into the credits. And I really hope that I didn't overdo the music stuff in this, but I was trying to convey the pace of the film. 

Holy crap, it's done! I hope this chapter lived up to expectations. I want to thank all of my wonderful reviewers again for their indispensable support! Thank you guys so very much!

Super-thanks to:

**Cherry Jade**

**Masterarcher**

**Siren's Call**

**Amber Myst** (I'm loving Emotions and Hell's Fury, by the way!)

**KidFlashisHot**

**And FOREVER**

**anonymous**

**Mirumo**

**SpiderSquirrel**

for all of your continuing encouragement, support, and love for the story!

**Xyteron**: Thank you so much for such a helpful and well thought-out review! I absolutely LOVED your Travelogues! Of course, I'm enjoying the heck out of the sequel, too! Your wonderful compliments mean a lot to me since I admire your writing so much.

I started to notice just how many prepositional phrases I used after you commented on it. I had no idea...damn you, Latin! Nothing like a foreign language to screw up your writing style, let me tell you. From now on, that will go on my list of things to automatically check for when I'm proofreading my stuff. I'm also glad that my sort of writing-off of the whole Starfire issue didn't seem to adversely affect the story's readability. Part of the problem was probably that I didn't think about it until that chapter...

My ability to write Beast Boy frightens me sometimes. I don't know if I _want_ to be able to think like him! Oh, and the collar joke reference... XD

**mysti-eyed**: Hee, hee, I was just trying to find a way to work that phrase in there...

**Broken Outcast**: Well, since the monkey was lying to BB, maybe he's telling you the truth! Monkeys from the future could be cool parents. And by the way, for an unparalleled (although incredibly happy) shock, there's nothing like trolling through a favorite's list and suddenly finding stories by me on it! Thank you so much!

**hafewolfdemon**: O.o Are you psychic? Nice job figuring that out!

**alena-chan**: Hey, I'm thrilled that you delivered a new chapter of Waiting! I totally understand how life can get. I'm very glad that you enjoyed the story, and that my attempts to make all the relationships work out actually did work. My story's all wrapped up now, but I'll definitely be enjoying yours! XD


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